Error 2203 | Install | Creative Suite 4, 5, or 5.5 products or updates

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Issue

When you install an Adobe Creative Suite 4, 5, or 5.5 product or updates, the installer returns one of the following error messages:

"Error 2203: Database: C:\Windows\Installer\d79c0.msi. Cannot open database file. System error -2147287035"

Solutions

Solution 1: Grant the SYSTEM account Full Control permissions.

Verify the directory permissions to grant the SYSTEM account Full Control permissions to the folder referenced in the log (for example, C:\Windows\Installer\c5ab.msi). The folder referenced is often \Windows\Installer.

Attempt the following steps on the \Windows\Installer folder.  If fixing the permissions to the installers folder does not resolve the issue, review the installation log file for the folder referenced in the error message. For information on finding the folder in the log, see Troubleshoot CS5 installation with install logs (cpsid_84451.)

Windows XP

  1. (Windows XP Home only) Restart in safe mode by pressing F8 as you start up and selecting Safe Mode from the list of startup options.

    Note: For additional assistance with Safe Mode, see the Microsoft support website.
  2. Choose Start > My Computer > Folder Options, and then click the View tab.
  3. In the Advanced Settings section, deselect the Use Simple File Sharing (Recommended) option and click OK.
  4. Navigate to the parent folder and right-click on the next folder.  
  5. In the Attributes section, deselect the Read-Only option, click Apply, and then click Appl.
  6. In the Security tab, make sure that Administrators and System are listed and permissions for security are set to Full Control.
  7. Click Advanced, select the Owner tab, and select Administrators.
  8. Select Replace Owner On Subcontainers and Objects, click Apply, and then click Yes.
  9. In the Permissions tab, select Replace Permission Entries On All Child Objects With Entries Shown Here That Apply To Child Objects and click OK. 
  10. Click Yes and OK until you've closed the Installers Properties dialog box.
  11. Reinstall your Adobe application.

Windows Vista/7

  1. Choose Start > Computer > Organize > Folder and Search Options, and then click the View tab.
  2. In the Advanced Settings section, deselect Use Sharing wizard (Recommended) and click OK.
  3. Navigate to the parent folder.
  4. Right-click the next folder, and then choose Properties.
  5. In the Attributes section, deselect Read-Only and click Apply, then OK.
  6. In the Security tab, make sure that Administrators and System are listed and permissions for security are set to Full Control. If not, do the following:

         a. Click Edit.

         b. If the User Account Control (UAC) elevation prompt appears, then follow the instructions to accept it.

         c. Make the necessary changes.
  7. Click Advanced, and in the Owner tab click Edit. Accept the UAC elevation prompt if it appears.
  8. In the Change Owners Section, click Administrators and select Replace Owner On Subcontainers and Objects. Then click Apply.
  9. In the Permissions tab, click Edit. Accept the UAC elevation prompt if it appears.
  10. Select Replace Permission Entries On All Child Objects With Entries Shown Here That Apply To Child Objects.
  11. Click OK and Yes until you've closed the Installers Properties dialog box.
  12. Repeat the process on any additional file paths.
  13. Reinstall your Adobe application.

Solution 2: Reinstall Microsoft Windows Installer 3.1 or 4.x.

Repair the Windows Installer.

Windows XP/Vista

  1. Download and install the newest Microsoft Windows Installer Redistributable pack.

Windows 7

  1. Click Start > All Programs > Accessories.
  2. Right-click Command Prompt and choose Run As Administrator.
  3. In the Command Prompt window, type sfc /SCANNOW and press Enter.
  4. When the system scan completes, type msiexec /unreg in the Command Prompt window, and press Enter.
  5. Type msiexec /regserver into the Command Prompt window, and press Enter.
  6. Proceed with the Creative Suite 5 product installation.

Solution 3: Disable startup items and services and attempt the installation again.

Ad-ware and Anti-virus software can lock certain files on your machine and prevent the installation.

Disable startup items and services on Windows XP

  1. Quit all applications.
  2. Choose Start > Run, and type msconfig in the Open field. Click OK.
  3. In the Startup tab, look at the list of startup items and record all deselected items.
  4. In the General tab, choose Selective Startup.
  5. Deselect Load Startup Items. Verify that Process System.ini File, Process Win.ini File, and Load System Services are selected.
  6. In the Services tab, selected Hide All Microsoft Services and then click Disable All.
  7. Enable any services required to troubleshoot your issue. 
  8. Click OK, and restart Windows.



    Note: On restart, you are notified that the System Configuration Utility has changed the way that Windows starts up. Click OK. When the System Configuration Utility appears, click Cancel.

     
  9. Right-click icons in the notification area of the taskbar to close or disable any startup items that are still active. Don't restart your computer.
  10. Start the installation again.

Disable startup items and services on Vista and Windows 7

  1. Quit all applications.
  2. Choose Start, type msconfig in the Search box, and press Enter.
  3. Write down all deselected items under the Startup and Services tabs.
  4. Click the General tab and choose Selective Startup.
  5. Click the Startup tab and select Disable All.
  6. Click the Services tab and select Hide All Microsoft Services.
  7. Select Disable All, then reselect any services that are essential for testing the problem. If you are unsure whether an item is essential, leave it deselected (disabled).
  8. Click Apply, and restart Windows. 



    Note: On restart, you are notified that the System Configuration utility has changed the way that Windows starts up. Click OK. When the System Configuration utility appears, click Cancel. 

     
  9. Right-click icons in the notification area of the taskbar to close or disable any startup items that are still active.  Don't restart your computer.
  10. Start the installation again.

Additional Information

The error code -2147287035 in the Installer log file usually indicates that an "Access denied" error occurred during the installation. This means that the installer might not have rights to write to the directory referenced. The 2203 error code can also be an indication of a problem with the Microsoft Windows Installer.

 

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